How to Face a Prefabricated Fireplace in Stone

Stone fireplaces add warmth and homeyness to any room, but installation by a professional mason can be costly. One solution is to add a facade onto a prefabricated fireplace, which will add a rustic quality to the room without costing you a fortune in the process. Installing thin stone tiles over the prefab fireplace instead of full stones also allows you to successfully create a stone-faced fireplace using only a few materials and minimal experience.

Medium-grit sandpaper
Paintbrush, 2-inch flat
Fine grout
Trowel
Grout rake
Stone tiles

Instructions

- 1
  Sand the surface of the prefabricated fireplace using medium-grit sandpaper, which will remove any areas that are uneven or rough.
- 2
  Brush off any dust and debris from the fireplace caused by the sandpaper using a 2-inch flat paintbrush.
- 3
  Spread a 1/2-inch thick layer of fine grout over the entire surface of the prefab fireplace where you want the stones placed using a trowel.
- 4
  Run a grout rake over the surface of the grout-covered fireplace to scratch or roughen up the surface. This enables the stone tiles to adhere more readily onto the fireplace.
- 5
  Press 1/4-inch thick stone tiles halfway into the grout-covered surface, spacing the stone tiles 1/4-inch apart. The excess grout will be pushed up in between the individual stone tiles.
- 6
  Scrape the trowel over the edges of the stone tiles to remove the excess grout and to create smooth creases.
- 7
  Allow the stone prefabricated fireplace to dry for 12 to 18 hours before use.

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